= “My favorite color is gold. Because I feel like it will bring me better luck with money…”

Hello everyone! Konnichiwa~!! Maggie desu!
You know what? It has been almost two months since I started these blog lessons — with my assistants Yukari and the other one… Vincent or something, I forget.
I really appreciate all of you who have come to study at my site. Please feel free to leave any comments and questions you might have. We welcome your feedback. I will try to answer as many of your questions as possible.
The lessons tend to be very long because I want to include as many related vocabulary and cultural notes as possible so that I can reach many different language levels in each lesson. Hopefully everyone will be able to learn something here!

I hope you’ll come back here again and again!

OK!! Today we will focus on colors and color related expressions! 「準備はいい？」( = Junbi wa ii?) Are you ready?

There are lots of color related idioms in English. It is very interesting to see the difference a color’s image has in different languages.

For example a person who lacks experience is called “green” in English, but in Japanese we use “blue.”
And in the old days “blue movie” in English meant “porn film,” but in Japanese a porn film is called a “pink movie.” The color pink has a sexual image in Japan.

OK, let’s take a look at each color, one by one!

White: 白 ( shiro/haku)

•白星 ( = shiro boshi): If you love Sumo, you might be already familiar with this word.

ホワイトデー ( =howaito dei) March 14th. If you are a man and receive chocolates or gifts from girls on Valentine’s day, you are expected to return some gifts on March 14th — called White day.

Gold : 金 ( = kin)

•金メダル ( = kin medaru) a gold medal

•金髪 ( = kinpatsu) blond hair

Silver :銀 ( = gin)

•銀河 ( = ginga) ( 河 ( = kawa/ka/ga) = river) →The Milky Way

Some of the words which use 銀 ( = gin) means bright white.

•銀世界 ( = ginsekai) snowy world

Ex.一面は銀世界だった。

= Ichimen wa ginsekai datta

= There was snow everywhere.

• 銀シャリ ( = ginshari) white rice

Sanguine: 紅：( kurenai, beni,aka/ kou) This color came from China.

• 紅一点（ = kouitten) the only girl in the group

• 紅白( = kouhaku) red and white

Cultural Note: The combination of red and white is considered good luck in Japan and the red and white striped curtains are used for happy events and ceremonies.

We make sweets or food for happy occasions such as 紅白まんじゅう ( = kouhaku manjyuu) and 紅白かまぼこ ( = kouhaku kamaboko) fish paste.

Also it is customary to have sports festivals or athletic meets divided into two groups, red and white in schools or companies.

紅白歌合戦 ( = Kouhaku Utagassen) :

A big singing contest show on New Year’s Eve on NHK (National Broadcast Television in Japan.) They divide all the singers into two group by sex,白組 (=Shiro gumi), male group and 紅組 ( = Aka gumi), female group.

Black: 黒 ( = koku/kuro/kuroi)

• 黒星 ( = kuroboshi) to be defeated (especially in a Sumo match)

• 腹黒い ( = hara guroi) evil minded

• 黒字 ( = kuroji) black in figure

• 黒 means guilty

Ex. 容疑者は黒だった

= Yougisha wa kuro datta.

The suspect was guilty.

Black and white= 白黒 ( = shirokuro)

• 白黒つける

= shirokuro tsukeru

= to make something clear

• 白黒はっきりさせる

= shirokuro hakkiri saseru

= to make something clear

Ex.この問題の白黒はっきりさせたい。

= Kono mondai no shirokuro hakkiri sasetai.

= I would like to set the record straight regarding this problem.

•白黒写真 ( = shirokuro shashin) black and white pictures

Note : See the difference of the order of the colors? In English you say “Black and white”

Also 赤 is the symbolic color of 共産主義者 ( = kyousan shugisha ) communists in the old days.

Cultural Note :

Avoid writing people’s names in red in Japan. It is considered to be very rude especially for the older generation. Some says it is because red ink was used to write criminal’s names or red reminded them of blood, etc.

Variation : You can use this sentence if you take色 out and replace it with something else.

（If you want to ask “Who is your favorite?”, You have to say 「誰ですか？」( = Dare desuka?) instead of 「何ですか？」( = Nan desuka.)

•「なんか〜そうな気がするから…」

=Nanka ~ souna ki ga surukara….

「なんか〜そうな気がします。」

= Nanka ~ souna ki ga shimasu.

Because I feel like~/Because it seems like/it appers to be

•なん（だ）か（ = nan(da)ka) for some reason, somehow

•〜そうな ( = ~ souna) or ~様な ( = youna) : It appears to ~ / It seems like~/ I feel like it will (would) ~

Ex. (なんか） 雨が降りそうだ。

= Ame ga furi souda.

= It seems like it is going to rain.

Ex. なんだかイケそうな気がする。

= Nandaka ikesou na ki ga suru.

= I feel like I can make it (or in some cases, sleep with someone) for some reason.

(Note : This line has become very popular and even all the children have starte to say as a joke since one of the Japanese comedians started to say. This gag ends with a line 「あると思います」（ = Aruto omoimasu) “I think it’s possible. “)

Wait a minute, maybe I misunderstood you. (I added some words in my previous comment.)
I think you know but the original color of the buildings are not red. But because of the reflection of the sun light, they turned in red.

1) It is an idiom 恥をかく= to get embarrassed. It simply means “to get” here but to be more precise, かく has many meanings as かける and this one is used when something annoying shows up on surface.
汗をかく = to sweat
いびきをかく = to snore